PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION
During my trip to Mammoth Cave National Park, I took some pictures. I picked a few ones, unfortunately, only two are from inside the cave. The poor lighting in the cave made it difficult to take a good picture, especially since no tripod or monopod can be brought in. The camera flash is rather insufficient, and without a proper support, I couldn't open the shutter longer (shake/vibration will distort the image). This is a shot of the Green River that runs through the park. We were walking on a trail and this look-out point was particularly beautiful. We later found that the reason why the river is green is because of the calcium deposits. And believe me, this river is green, unlike the dyed Chicago River during St. Pat's day.
Like many national parks, Mammoth Cave is also a wildlife refuge to many animals. Some animals are easier to spot than others, and the time of day is also crucial. We were lucky to see deer in day light. How many can you spot in this picture? As you can see, they are well camelflouged in the woods. Luckily I had a 70-300mm zoom lens with me to take this shot. Couldn't get any closer... wished I had a power-telescope lens.
The cave system at Mammoth Cave is formed by water cutting away the limestones. The layered limestones are protected by the sandstones at the surface, which explains why the caves don't collapse. Here is a cave with layers of limestone. This is pretty close to what you would see inside the cave. I used a fast shutter speed to trying to produce a stop-motion effect.
This is inside the cave, near the Rotunda. Large passages and high ceiling allow visitors. Right now, we are about some 100-200 feet below the surface. The entire cave system is measured to be about 360 miles long, with many passages undiscovered and unmapped. All these caves are within a 25 square mile area. The underground river continues to make new caves everyday...
Here you are looking at a canyon inside the cave, carved out by water some 1-2 million years ago. The walking path is blackened walk along an old river. Can you tell from the picture which direction was the water flowing? This scene is part of the Grand Avenue tour, which takes you through 4 miles of cave system, visiting various cave formations. Of course, the geology is the same--limestones capped by sandstone. Do you know that limestone mixed with water created carbonated water? it is the carbonated water that cuts the limestone, the same carbonated water that is in soft drink, only we drink more concentrated carbonated water in Coke or Pepsi, than the ones carving out the caves (about 100 fold more).
Mammoth Cave National Park is unique because the amazing sight is underground, and there are many histories associated with it.
Others...
These are two shots of "artistic" attempts... this one looks at the tree and this one is at the tulips.
Here is shot of the most complete T-rex fossil ever found--Sue. This is an exhibition at the Field Museum.
During my trip to Mammoth Cave National Park, I took some pictures. I picked a few ones, unfortunately, only two are from inside the cave. The poor lighting in the cave made it difficult to take a good picture, especially since no tripod or monopod can be brought in. The camera flash is rather insufficient, and without a proper support, I couldn't open the shutter longer (shake/vibration will distort the image). This is a shot of the Green River that runs through the park. We were walking on a trail and this look-out point was particularly beautiful. We later found that the reason why the river is green is because of the calcium deposits. And believe me, this river is green, unlike the dyed Chicago River during St. Pat's day.
Like many national parks, Mammoth Cave is also a wildlife refuge to many animals. Some animals are easier to spot than others, and the time of day is also crucial. We were lucky to see deer in day light. How many can you spot in this picture? As you can see, they are well camelflouged in the woods. Luckily I had a 70-300mm zoom lens with me to take this shot. Couldn't get any closer... wished I had a power-telescope lens.
The cave system at Mammoth Cave is formed by water cutting away the limestones. The layered limestones are protected by the sandstones at the surface, which explains why the caves don't collapse. Here is a cave with layers of limestone. This is pretty close to what you would see inside the cave. I used a fast shutter speed to trying to produce a stop-motion effect.
This is inside the cave, near the Rotunda. Large passages and high ceiling allow visitors. Right now, we are about some 100-200 feet below the surface. The entire cave system is measured to be about 360 miles long, with many passages undiscovered and unmapped. All these caves are within a 25 square mile area. The underground river continues to make new caves everyday...
Here you are looking at a canyon inside the cave, carved out by water some 1-2 million years ago. The walking path is blackened walk along an old river. Can you tell from the picture which direction was the water flowing? This scene is part of the Grand Avenue tour, which takes you through 4 miles of cave system, visiting various cave formations. Of course, the geology is the same--limestones capped by sandstone. Do you know that limestone mixed with water created carbonated water? it is the carbonated water that cuts the limestone, the same carbonated water that is in soft drink, only we drink more concentrated carbonated water in Coke or Pepsi, than the ones carving out the caves (about 100 fold more).
Mammoth Cave National Park is unique because the amazing sight is underground, and there are many histories associated with it.
Others...
These are two shots of "artistic" attempts... this one looks at the tree and this one is at the tulips.
Here is shot of the most complete T-rex fossil ever found--Sue. This is an exhibition at the Field Museum.
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